Baroness Boothroyd of Sandwell, the former Speaker of the House of Commons,
today urged rebels to ignore party political “blackmailing” and vote down
the Bill to reform the House of Lords.

The Labour peer joined forces with Tory rebels who are threatening to inflict
David Cameron’s first defeat over government legislation.

“I have been in Parliament nearly 40 years,” Lady Boothroyd told the BBC Radio
4 Today programme. “I have never witnessed such a reckless attempt to
change the British constitution, and to do it on such spurious grounds,
quite frankly.